The profile of maternal deaths in a district hospital: a five-year review of maternal deaths from 2006–2010

Abstract

AbstractObjectives: The objectives were to determine the clinical and demographic profile of maternal deaths, determine the most common primary causes of maternal deaths at district hospital level, compare the causes of deaths at district hospital, provincial and national level, and to investigate the quality of care that was provided to maternal deaths patients and to make recommendations.Design: The design was a cross-sectional retrospective chart review.Setting and subjects: Subjects were all reported maternal deaths between January 2006 and December 2010 at Northdale Hospital, KwaZulu-Natal.Outcome measures: Outcome measures were the common characteristics and causes of maternal deaths, avoidable maternal deaths and quality of care.Results: The mean age of the 61 maternal deaths was 28 years. Thirty-three patients attended antenatal clinics. Of these, 57.6% booked at ≤ 20th week. Of the 28 (45.9%) who died in the postpartum period, seven delivered at home and three died of anaesthetic complications. T...